


Usagi and Mamoru's Amazing Adventure

by Shnuggletea



Category: Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon | Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (Anime & Manga)
Genre: AU, Action, Adventure, Comedy, F/M, Fluffy, Romance, mamo x usa, multiverse au, twisted fairy tale
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-27 09:53:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,869
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30120966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shnuggletea/pseuds/Shnuggletea
Summary: Mamoru and Ami's life-saving laser is a bust. Beyond defeated and upset, Mamoru takes his anger out on the useless machine... only to turn it into an interdimensional warp drive that sends him and Usagi on one wild ride. Usagi and Mamoru will have to work together to figure out how to make them jump to the next dimension. With no control over where they go next, they can only do their best and hope 'the next jump brings them home'. A Sliders meets Quantum Leap series with Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure kind of feel.
Relationships: Chiba Mamoru/Tsukino Usagi
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4
Collections: Fairy Tale Challenge 2021





	Usagi and Mamoru's Amazing Adventure

_Enter the Multiverse_

He didn’t get it but he wasn’t about to give Ami a hard time. After all, he never would have finished this without her help. So, if Ami wanted to invite friends over to see their work, he would sit back quietly and watch. It’s not like he had any friends of his own to have over and if he did… well it was a pretty big moment; it should be shared with people one loved. 

He just didn’t have anyone he loved. 

When three girls filed into the tiny room, the research room rented to him by the college, Mamoru tried not to allow his disappointment to show that a certain Odangoed blonde wasn’t with them. 

“Where’s Usagi-chan?” Ami asked when he couldn’t. 

“Late. Something about helping her mom. She promised to be here as soon as she could though!” 

Makoto was eager so he had his doubts. Sounded like Usagi was flaking to Mamoru. Hard to believe she would do that to her friend but maybe someone told Usagi he was here too? Ami would have said it was their joint project long ago. 

And everyone knew, Usagi could barely stand Mamoru. 

Had gotten to the point where she even stood her friends up? Great. That one hurt more than he’d like to admit. 

_Whatever_. Usagi wasn’t the first person to hate him and she wouldn’t be the last. Mamoru just wished he could get his brain and heart in sync; one ready to move on while the other still clinging like a virus to healthy cells. 

The girls gathered; Ami handed out goggles to all of them and Minako started to look nervous. “This is safe, right?”

He was priming the machine but glanced over his shoulder to catch the blonde’s (that showed up) wide eyes. “As long as you’re not in the laser’s path, it’s perfectly safe. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Not even the grammar rays?” Makoto asked and he bit his tongue to keep from laughing at her. 

Ami smiles brightly at her friends, reassuring them. “Gamma rays, and yes. They’re set at a very low level, non-harmful.”

“If I grow another arm, I’m suing the crap out of you both,” Rei said, crossing her arms indignantly. If anyone could, it would be the pre-law major in the room.

That wouldn’t be the worst thing to happen. The worst thing would be if it blew up! But Mamoru knew it wouldn’t do that… surely.

Ami placed an apple in the target zone and he aimed the laser appropriately. Standing next to her friends, Ami silently gave him the go-ahead to press the button. The pad of his finger grazed the launch button and for a split second, he thought “maybe we should have done this first test run alone?”

Too late to turn back now, they only had a limited time to complete the project as well as an allotted energy allowance. One-shot would deplete their dividend to half empty. 

That, and they only had one apple. 

“Test number one, gamma-ray laser for targeting and burning cancerous cells without surgery or chemo, designed by Mamoru Chiba and Ami Mizuno.” He said to the camera he set up an hour ago. If this worked, they needed proof. 

The humming sound of the computer heating up the laser filled the otherwise silent room while his heart hummed as well. This had to work. At least a little bit. He hoped to heat the core of the Apple just enough to cook the seeds and that’s all. Once they proved it could work on an Apple, they would receive test subjects. Cancerous cells in a bottle. Or rather a test tube. But they had to prove it first or they would get nothing. 

They weren’t the only ones trying to end cancer. 

“You might want to cover your ears,” Ami called out, the last thing he could hear before the machine took off. 

It was invisible, the beam of gamma rays that shot out of the machine at the Apple. He had to double-check to make sure it was firing. It was, and the apple slowly began to shake. That wasn’t what they wanted but it wasn’t a big deal so he left it on. It was supposed to be sustained for four minutes. Four minutes, a heated core, and they had succeeded. 

Three-minute mark, he started to get excited, his heart racing. Glancing at Ami, he saw she was smiling brightly as well. They were going to make it. 

Just as the thought swirled in his brain, the apple disappeared. No smoke, no pieces, no juice. It was just gone. He blinked and the Apple was no more!

Turning off the laser, he quickly stepped up to the small table he had put the damn thing on minutes ago. The only thing that remained was a small black smudge. But that didn’t make sense, there was nothing else to prove it exploded?!

“Mamoru-san…”

It was probably Ami or Rei that touched him but he pulled harshly from their touch. It should have worked, why didn’t it work?!

“It must be my calculations. I must have messed them up somewhere.”

Ami was all set to take the blame and he just couldn’t have that. “No. We messed up somewhere. It’s alright…”

“We’re supposed to present in two days!” Ami cried. 

But Mamoru just shook his head. “I’ll have to take it apart and figure it out. It’s not the math, it’s the mechanics.” He turned to the girls with a forced smile on his face. “It’s alright. You guys go.”

Ami wanted to stay but Makoto forced her out with them. Now he was glad the girls came, Ami really needed them. Too bad he didn’t have anyone to lean on but that wasn’t anything new. 

Rei paused at the door and looked back at him. “We’re going to ‘The Crown’ if you change your mind and want to join?”

The school’s underground bar did sound pretty good right now. But he would be terrible company and he really couldn’t hold his liquor. “Thanks.”

Alone, Mamoru looked over the damned machine, glaring at it with malice. They would never get it running in time; it needed to be completely dismantled and reconfigured. One of the mirrors inside must have snapped during the practice run, it would have caused the rays to be too concentrated, making the apple explode. 

The mirrors weren’t cheap either. Military-grade for the scope of a sniper rifle that was special orders to fit their design. Even if he had a hope of getting inside to the broken mirror, he had no replacement for it. 

So there was only one thing left to do. 

With his disappointed rage curling around his heart, Mamoru kicked the damn thing as hard as he could. It was pretty solid; rocking a little on its foundation, he did little to no damage. 

He might have lost it for a minute. 

When Mamoru stopped, he was out of breath and a few pieces now littered the floor. The door to the room slammed open just as his ass hit the floor in exhaustion. 

“I’m here!!! Sorry, I’m late but my mom… hello?”

“Your friends are gone.”

Cerulean crashed into him; Usagi got on her knees before him quickly. “What the heck happened?”

Mamoru didn’t want to smile, because it didn’t reflect the turmoil in his brain. But she was just so damn cute sometimes. The most he could manage was to force it into a smirk. “We failed. Or I did.”

“It didn’t work?!” 

The amount of shock from his failure on her face and tone made him feel a little better. Usagi hadn’t even considered they might not succeed. But then, it made him feel worse. Even Usagi had expectations for them, for him, and he failed. He let everyone around him down constantly. 

Even without a look of disappointment on Usagi’s beautiful face, he still felt an irrational sting from it, jumping to his feet and knocking her off of hers. It was a shortfall to her ass so he didn’t feel too bad about it. He just needed some space. 

“Yeah. It didn’t work. Give Usagi a cookie.”

She got to her feet and followed him. “I’m sorry.”

“Where were you?” He asked, turning on his heel to glare down at her. “Your friends were here and Ami needed you!”

“I had to help my mom…”

“Bullshit. You didn’t want to be here, admit it.”

“What?! Of course, I wanted to be here! Why wouldn’t I?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Science? Lack of a brain? General disinterested in anything that doesn’t involve a ‘sick dance beat’?”

Mamoru wasn’t being fair and he knew it but he was pissed off at everything right now. He could hardly be held accountable for his actions. 

Mamoru knew well enough that Usagi would hold him to every word he said and that he would regret a lot of things tonight. Her arms crossed over her chest and tapping her toe was only the beginning. 

“I came here to support you and Ami tonight even when I have a million other things to do that, by the way, also don’t include a ‘sick dance beat’. This is why I don’t like you! You look down on me just because I’m a dance major! Well, guess what, Mamoru, we can’t all be as stuck up our ass as you are! Med major prick!!”

“I don’t look down on you for your major. I look down on you for the complete inability to have an intelligent conversation with you. I might as well be talking to a toddler!!”

“If you talked to a toddler, you’d give it nightmares. Terrorized for life by the robot man!”

That stung, taking a step back to grab a piece of the machine from the floor and chuck it hard at the wall. It bounced back and whizzed dangerously close to Usagi before hitting the remaining hulk of the machine. 

“Are. You. CRAZY??! You almost hit me!!!”

“Calm down,” even though she was painfully right, “it wasn’t even close…”

“Seriously? What is wrong with you?”

“What’s wrong with me? I fucked up! Ami and I have been working on this for two years and we’re out of time. It didn’t work tonight so we’re screwed. No funding, no scientific discovery, no nothing. In two days we’ll be shut down. It’s over.”

Mamoru was busy looking at the floor, disgusted with himself. So much so, he had a headache. Here he was being a complete ass and showing a side of himself _he_ didn’t even like seeing. 

It was the lightest touch, but he felt it and it felt heavy to him. Glancing up, he was caught up in cerulean pools yet again. They nearly had him weak in the knees; they were so damn bright. “I’m so, so sorry Mamoru.”

And she meant it, he could feel it in his bones. “It’s not…”

That’s when he heard it, the humming. Shit, how long had it been on??!

There was no telling, they could have been exposed for several minutes by now. And there was no telling the effect it would have if he did break more mirrors inside. 

Her eyes went impossibly wide as he grabbed her, pulling her into his arms as he tried to cocoon her in them. Turning his back, he had her as much out of the rays as physically possible. He felt nothing. No heat or pain. It was just… dark. 

oOo

The downy she was rolling around in smelled of lavender and sweet honey. It was hard to get up –literally- she struggled to push up on the overly fluffy mattress. The long, silk nightgown she wore didn’t help, wrapped around her legs and trapping her. 

Pale sunlight beamed in from a large French door; a balcony. Not that she needed another clue but she was not in her room. Not her bed or her nightgown. Not her house either; they didn’t have a balcony. 

Or a huge hallway made of white marble and gold plating (she found outside the large doors across from her bed). Usagi shared a three-bedroom apartment with Rei, Ami, Makoto, and Minako. The grandest thing about that place was the washing machine the landlord let them borrow. She spent most nights back at home lately anyway.

A gasp alerted her to someone else nearby so she turned quickly, finding a woman with long, curly black hair approaching quickly. “Lady Usagi, what are you doing?” She _really_ didn’t know. “Put on some clothes! There are men in the palace today!”

Gently pulling, Usagi found herself back in the room she woke up in, surrounded by women who were fussing over her. One of which, opened a closet that was the size of her entire apartment. 

“Whoa.”

Ignoring her and her amazement, Usagi was soon getting stuffed into a gorgeous (and uncomfortable) gown. 

Shoved into a chair, one woman started on her hair; putting it in her signature style but curling the ends and adding pearls. The woman that found her and dragged her into this stood off to the side watching. “Um… not that I’m not thankful but… what is this all about?”

The woman furrowed her brows but then stifled a laugh. “You forgot, didn’t you? It’s your day, Lady Usagi, to come out.”

“Come out?”

“Into society? Pick a husband?”

“What? I can’t pick a husband, I’m only nineteen!!”

Crazy. This was crazy! What was she doing before this? She helped mom with cleaning the house then ran to catch up with the girls…

Mamoru. Where was Mamoru?! Was she asleep?! It wouldn’t be the first time she dreamed of being a rich noble. But this felt real, the girl tugging on her strands hurt! If she was asleep, then she was asleep near Mamoru and he wouldn’t let her remain unconscious for long. Would he?

He said some pretty mean things to her but he was just upset. Mamoru always said mean things to her but last night had been the worst. 

Maybe Usagi didn’t want him to wake her up; maybe it would be better if someone else did. Anyone else. 

Now wearing the uncomfortable heels that matched the uncomfortable dress, Usagi followed the crowd and was led to a long dance hall. It was filled with people all elegantly dressed. She still wore a flashier gown than the rest, standing out before they announced her. 

“The Lady Usagi of the Tsukino family.”

The air was filled with murmurs and perfume. And sweet smells, a table covered in food beckoning to her. If she were a cartoon, she would have floated to the table, carried by the delicious scents. 

A pastry within her reach, she was pulled away by a hand on hers. “My Lady, may I have this dance?”

The whimper of displeasure she released was ignored. No one was listening to Usagi or her rumbling tummy. She should have grabbed a sandwich on her way out last night. 

Passed from man to man, each equally handsome and charming; Usagi could care less. Her feet and back ached while her stomach sucked on her backbone for substance. Now, she honestly didn’t give a crap who woke her as long as they had breakfast for her when they did!!

Weak in the knees, she begged her next partner for a break. “Break? But I’ve been waiting all night to dance with you!”

“The _lady_ is tired, man. Back off.”

Never had she ever been so relieved to hear Mamoru’s condescending voice. She turned to him without hesitation, letting him catch her when her strength went out. “And who are you? A servant?!”

Looking for the first time, she realized he was a servant. Still the same devastating deep blue eyes and messy black hair but now he rocked a uniform. Black slacks, worn shoes, and a cheap black vest over his white shirt and black tie. Just like all the other servers around them. 

What difference did it make, Usagi was tired and he was the only one to care! “Calm down he’s just helping me.”

“Usagi..” Mamoru warned but she didn’t understand. 

“He’s a servant. He shouldn’t be touching you, Lady Usagi.”

There was nothing but disgust on the guy’s face and in his tone. Mamoru took his hands off her and she got hot from her anger. “He is my friend and the only person to give a damn about me for the last freaking five hours! Who do you think you are? Talking down to him like that?!”

“Usagi…” Mamoru warned again. 

“And he addresses you so informally?! What is he to you?!”

“I just told you, not that it’s your business! He’s my friend!”

“Friends with a servant? No wonder he shows you no respect. What else does this _servant_ do to you?!”

The nerve of this guy. Just what was he trying to say?! “If I slept with Mamoru, it’s my business and no one else’s!”

“USAGI!”

Suddenly, men appeared, grabbing and yanking Mamoru away from her. “What are you doing?! Let him go!!”

“Usagi just shut up!”

They dragged him away and she couldn’t do a thing about it. 

oOo

 _Everything hurt_. Normally, Mamoru would consider that a bad thing but since he had feeling (shitty feelings) it meant he was alive.

This left him nothing but confused when he woke up on a cot. It did explain his stuff back and shoulders. The ratty blanket covering him was just for show; his joints cold from a long night without warmth. And he wasn’t alone.

Mamoru had spent the majority of his life alone. So waking up in a room full of other men and women left him hyper-aware. He was not in his room, his house, or his life.

Everyone was rising, getting to their feet while it wasn’t even dawn yet. Mamoru followed along and watched in silence. What else could he do? The questions he had would only bring attention to him and that was the last thing he wanted.

They all got dressed (a narrow hallway that was lined with cubbies) in the same space and lacked any humility about it. Mamoru forced himself to copy them, keeping his head down as he pulled on the black slacks and white shirt that matched everyone else. They looked like waiters. The clothes they wore now were maintained and clean but far from comfortable or upscale. They were designed to look uniform while not being expensive. It reminded him of the clothes he was given when he lived in the orphanage.

The others formed a line and Mamoru filled in with them, following along with the routine. He wasn’t sure yet what was going on but until he figured that out, he needed to remain unnoticed. Because one thing was clear; he was an outsider and he didn’t belong here.

Some parted one way and then some another. It was hard to know what was expected of him but Mamoru took a guess and hoped he was right. He clump he followed grabbed brooms and rags to clean up the dust. No one spoke or made much sound. One guy coughed from the dust and everyone froze like something else would happen. When nothing did, they continued with their work. No one was paying attention; it was all too easy for Mamoru to sneak off and try to figure out what the hell was going on. The place was endless, long hall after long hall of elegant dressing.

He hadn’t gone far when turned onto a hall that wasn’t empty. Gold glittered but it wasn’t from the fancy stuff on the walls.

It was Usagi.

Her name on his lips, he whispered at first, happy to recognize someone here. But then his words died in his throat. . “Lady Usagi, what are you doing? Put on some clothes! There are men in the palace today!”

She was taken away after that, guided back to a room that she disappeared in. If Usagi was here, what on Earth did that mean? She was part of the dream? Not a dream, this was something else. You didn’t feel pain in a dream. And right now, his stomach was twisting with the pain of hunger.

“Hey, what are you doing?!”

The harsh whisper was to Mamoru and he spun on his heel to find the person addressing him. Comfort overwhelmed; another familiar face. “Makoto?”

“You’re not supposed to be here and you’re not supposed to be doing nothing!”

She grabbed him and began pulling Mamoru back to wherever it was he was ‘supposed’ to be. “Makoto, what is all this?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, where are we? How did we get here?”

She didn’t stop, hustling as though their lives depended on it. But she did pass him a sad look. “Oh no, the beating last night must have wrecked your mind. You’ve lost it, Mamoru.”

Beating? He’d been beaten?! “Lost what?”

Makoto stopped but he had a feeling that was because they had ‘arrived’. “Mamoru… we’re orphans.” That he knew, it was no different than his normal life. “And because of that, we are in the country’s… _care_. Remember?”

Mamoru didn’t but that was because this wasn’t his life. “Okay, so what do I do here?”

Makoto passed him a broom. “Work. And survive. Keep your head down from now on, no more trouble, and you’ll live. At least until you can’t work anymore.”

“What?”

She smirked, “consider yourself lucky. You’re a man! You’ll be useful for a lot longer than a woman. We can’t be bred after we dry up!”

If Mamoru wasn’t so hungry, he might have thrown up then. Which reminded him, grabbing Makoto before she completely walked away. “When do we eat? I’m starving.”

Her hands flew to his mouth and covered it harshly. “Don’t say things like that!”

She left him to get back to her work and Mamoru continued with his, sweeping pointlessly while trying not to pass out from hunger. The others didn’t seem to struggle as much with their stomachs but then a couple of them started to crowd together and fuss.

“I found it!”

“I’m your superior!”

“Both of you, shut up. You’re going to get us caught!”

As soon as the words left the man’s mouth, a man with a finer suit than any of them stepped up and grabbed one of them hard. If they weren’t starved and tired, the three men could have taken the one guy easily. But, with conditions what they were, the single short man in a suit was able to control the three men with ease as he grabbed the item they fought over and looked it over. Mamoru looked too, staring hard at the item.

It was an apple.

“Where did you get this?”

The three men trembled. One spoke softly, “I found it. This morning.”

“You found it? Then it belongs to the Tsukino family, not you. You stole it!”

“No! No, I swear, I didn’t!!”

“Did you two help him?”

The man in the suit glared over the other two and they remained silent. So the suited man grabbed the one who touched the apple by the scruff of his neck and pulled him away. And no one helped.

Without getting a closer look at it or examining it at all, Mamoru couldn’t be sure but it seemed too coincidental that there was an apple lying around when they seemed to be scarce here. It didn’t belong, just like him.

And an apple had been in under the laser before he was.

Another man in a suit appeared, wrangling them all up and Mamoru thought for a moment that they were going to be fed. Instead, they were led to a small kitchen and handed trays of food. Not to eat, but to carry.

From maid to server, the people of this world shifted easily into their roles. Mamoru had never worked in food service before and to say he struggled to keep his tray as high as the others was an understatement.

He caught sight of Makoto a few times but she didn’t glance his way. There were a lot of faces around him as he swam the seas of glamourous prosperity. It was the smells that got to him, the scent of food choking him with his hunger. How easy would it be to steal some food here? There were a ton of people but none of them were looking at him. No one made eye contact. That was the way of things here; it was easy to catch on to how things worked. He was an orphan and therefore lesser. So everyone treated him like gum on the bottom of their shoe.

Mamoru was just about to try his luck with a croissant when the announcer yelled out, “The Lady Usagi of the Tsukino family.”

Everyone stopped and looked, himself included. In all white, she looked like an angel or goddess. But what else was new? She was dripping with pearls and diamonds while gracefully floating down the stairs at the front of the room. Mamoru was drawn to her, another familiar face but it was more than that. Part of him wanted to have her be cruel to him. After all, he said to her before… it would help with the guilt he was carrying.

That wasn’t fair and he knew it. This wasn’t the same Usagi he had spoken to last. It wasn’t the one he had spoken to ever. This wasn’t his world. Mamoru couldn’t be sure but his theory was that the beating he gave the laser tilted the mirrors inside to the point that they reflected on one another. It caused the machine to heat too much and melt. It all led to a disfigured path for the beam which was why he wasn’t dead. It didn’t explain why he was in a different world though. Maybe he was asleep? In a coma where he felt things like hunger? It’s not as if anyone knows for sure what a person feels when unconscious for long periods.

He was getting a few looks now but that was because he was so close to the main event: Usagi. This whole affair was all for her and that was clear with how many asked her to dance. It was a feeding frenzy of sharks and Usagi was the bait.

Getting as close as he could, Mamoru listened to those watching, catching the occasional word from the Usagi’s dance partner when they passed. The people around him talked in length about each man that took Usagi for a spin. His net worth, home size, and family heritage. Some were taken bets on who the young heiress would choose. Other than her getting auctioned off, Mamoru marveled at how well Usagi fit in here. Glamour, admiration, and dancing. It was what she always deserved and at least in this world, Usagi got it.

Mamoru was watching her spin, so graceful as she moved around the dancefloor when her most recent partner released her. Usagi was free for less than a second before another man stepped up to claim her. But the golden goose was tired; Mamoru knew the signs well. It was the look on her face; eyes dim, mouth drawn, and cheeks flushed. It was how Usagi always looked when she was hungry and tired. It only took him a few weeks of knowing her to catch on to that look. The man trying to dance with her didn’t know her though, trying to force her to continue. Mamoru couldn’t take it and no matter how much his brain screamed at him that it was a bad idea at least he would get to speak to the Usagi of this world before he had his memory beaten out of him.

Usagi was whimpering, begging for a break and it made Mamoru’s heart break in response. All rationale went out the window when the man grabbed Usagi harshly, ignoring her pleas. “Break? But I’ve been waiting all night to dance with you!”

He was pissed. Whether Usagi was known to the guy or not, she was clearly exhausted and this guy was being an asshole. “The _lady_ is tired, man. Back off.”

The wide-eyed relief that passed over Usagi’s face had Mamoru wondering. If she was like the others here, she should be wearing a look of disgust towards him like the guy that was trying to force her to dance did. “And who are you? A servant?!”

Keeping his eyes on the man, Mamoru clenched his fists at his side instead of slamming them into the man’s face as he wanted. He needed to keep from making too many ripples. If this was an alternate universe, then the less he changed the better.

“Calm down he’s just helping me.”

She grabbed onto Mamoru and he tried to push her away. She wasn’t acting like the others but that could just be her character here, always the overly kind-hearted woman that she was. No matter the universe. But it would only get her in trouble. “Usagi…”

“He’s a servant. He shouldn’t be touching you, Lady Usagi.”

He finally got her hands off him and Usagi only got angrier, the flush she wore not nearly as adorable when her anger was pointed at someone other than him. “He is my friend and the only person to give a damn about me for the last freaking five hours! Who do you think you are? Talking down to him like that?!”

What were the chances that Usagi, in any dimension, thought of him as a friend? It had Mamoru seriously considering staying in this dimension but he would only get this Usagi in trouble. “Usagi…”

“And he addresses you so informally?! What is he to you?!”

“I just told you, not that it’s your business! He’s my friend!”

Funny. They called each other by first names in their world too. Mamoru had never thought of it as a big deal before but now that the guy was pointing it out, why did they address each other in such a friendly manner?

“Friends with a servant? No wonder he shows you no respect. What else does this _servant_ do to you?!”

He was struggling with his rage again, speaking to Usagi like she was a whore. “If I slept with Mamoru, it’s my business and no one else’s!”

And she went there with the guy. “USAGI!”

The men in suits appeared, grabbing Mamoru and tugging him from the room. Usagi had fully condemned him at this point. “What are you doing?! Let him go!!”

She didn’t know? He looked at her face; Usagi was confused and terrified. The Usagi that stared at him with worry was the same Usagi from his world. And she was only going to get in trouble if she kept running her mouth. “Usagi just shut up!”

They dragged him to a dark place and left him there, surrounded by thick bars and dingy walls. And no escape in sight.

oOo

What had she done?! Her dream had Mamoru and consequences?? If this was her dream then why couldn’t she control it? And why did her stomach hurt; she was sooooo hungry! This was feeling less and less like a dream and more like a nightmare.

The events with Mamoru at least got her excused. More like escorted away and locked in her room. Food was left on a tray for her but by the time it arrived, Usagi was too busy pacing and worrying about Mamoru.

He had been angry, frustrated, and humiliated. All that was enough to make her skin crawl but the wild look in his eyes when he protected her? The way his hands and shoulders shook? It was more than that, she had seen him like that once or twice before when he worked too hard and forgot to eat.

Mamoru was hungry too.

That was a really weird coincidence but one that she latched onto and couldn’t let go of. That, and how hot Mamoru was when he was mad at someone besides her. Mamoru had never been angry with her, not like he had been on the dancefloor. He was usually just agitated or annoyed with her. He had never told her to shut up before and given the way those around them acted, it wasn’t normal for anyone to speak to her that way in this dream world.

Like hell, she was going to be quiet like they wanted her to be. Not even Mamoru could stop her; waiting for dawn to come and someone to unlock her door. Usagi rushed the person on the other side, pausing to look back when the yelp the person released sounded familiar. The blue hair that splayed all around only had Usagi slowing down more.

“Ami?!”

She got to her knees and glared up at Usagi. “Who else would come to rescue you, cousin?!”

“Rescue me? We need to rescue Mamoru!”

“…who?” Usagi turned and left her behind but Ami caught up. “What’s the rush? No one will be around for a few more hours. They’re all busy with the sentencing of that servant…”

“What servant?” Usagi asked, spinning and grabbing her friend hard.

Ami’s eyes looked wild and a little bit scared. No food or sleep in hours, Usagi was a very scary person. “The one that… accosted you last night? Don’t worry, Usagi, he’ll be put to death for sure.”

“Why would they kill him?!”

“Because! He was rude and he touched you!” Ami made a face of disgust and Usagi’s stomach turned. “An orphan touching a lady? They’ll need to make an example of him too, probably flog him publically first so the others don’t get any ideas.”

“Flog him?!” Usagi ripped her hold off of Ami and grimaced hard at her. “Take me to where they are now!”

Ami hesitated but soon led Usagi to the same room she danced in the night before. It was full of bodies again but this time, they lined the sides. At the head of the room were her mother and father… and Mamoru.

On his knees with his hands tied behind his back, Usagi’s heart squeezed so tight it hurt at the sight. She worked her way through the crowd, getting a good look at his face. He was shaking and she didn’t know if he was scared, angry, starving, or all of it. Ami was right behind her, grabbing onto her dress to try and stop her. Others were looking at her in confusion as she pushed through; it was probably the craziest she had ever looked around these people, hair wild and still in the dress she wore the night before?

Usagi didn’t care, maybe it would help her if she seemed unhinged.

“You, servant. You touched my daughter and embarrassed this household. Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

Mamoru was silent, staring at the floor before him and saying nothing. It tore at her, the man who always had something to say to her was so quiet now when it mattered most? If he wouldn’t say anything, she would.

“Then I sentence you to death. Take him away to the stage…”

“Stop!!”

Mamoru’s head wrenched back to look at her; his eyes were bloodshot and hooded. Usagi stepped out of the crowd and up to her ‘parents’. “Usagi? What are you doing here?! You should be resting.”

Her mother cooed to her but it made her skin crawl. “I’m here to speak on Mamoru’s… behalf.” What did people say in situations like this? “He is a good man and did nothing wrong!”

“Usagi, this isn’t your place. Go back to your room.”

“Usagi,” Mamoru growled at her and she looked, his eyes dark, “stay out of this.”

She ignored them both. “Wasn’t I the one he touched? If I say it's fine, then it’s fine!”

Usagi’s hunger and exhaustion were getting to her, the walls starting to vibrate, but she pushed through while Mamoru hissed beside her. “Get out of here, Usagi. Now!”

She turned and crouched before him. “I’m not leaving you behind. This is my dream, I’ll make everything right.”

“This isn’t a dream and you’re going to get us killed!”

He wasn’t making any sense. Maybe he was so hungry that he was hallucinating? “Mamoru, I’m not going to let them hurt you! Even if none of this is real!”

“Usagi! Listen to me! This isn’t a dream. It’s an alternate dimension! And the more we mess with it, the more we run the risk of destroying everything including ourselves! You have to let them do what they will to me or you’ll die!”

Mamoru’s dark blue eyes were digging into her. They always had the ability to slay her, make her feel weak. Now was no different but she refused to listen to him. She refused to live in a world where Mamoru or anyone like him was hurt or killed for who they were!

Standing, the world spun a little. She had gotten up way too fast and her belly was still very empty. It took her a moment to steady herself and Mamoru pressed his shoulder against her thigh to help. That got more gasps and angry murmurs that Usagi wanted to address but the colors were all swirling together.

“Mamoru is my friend. And he is one of the smartest and amazing people that I know! Next to my friend Ami!” People murmured more and she pressed on. “You can’t kill him, I won’t allow it. I won’t let you touch him! You’ll have to kill me too!”

Her mother and father gasped, their faces going blank and losing their color. Completely, the world’s color drained away.

“Usagi, stop!”

She turned back to him, Mamoru still on his knees right behind her. He was begging with his eyes, pleading and looking scared for the first time since she met him. It made her legs give out, falling to the ground and wrapping her arms around his neck. “It’s okay. I don’t want a world to exist without you in it. You deserve to be alive just as much as I do. Even more so.”

“That’s not true, Usagi.”

“It is and I don’t care what happens, as long as you’re okay.” Mamoru pressed his face into her neck and Usagi returned her glare to the people of this world. “You should all be ashamed of yourselves. Lack of parentage doesn’t make a person lesser. If anything, it makes them stronger since they survived on their own. I’d rather be an orphan than have parents who treat people so poorly!”

Something cracked and popped while the people around them didn’t seem to notice a thing. But Usagi was watching as the world broke apart around them.

“This is… unprecedented!” Her ‘father’ yelled.

Someone yelled for Mamoru’s release and a few others joined in. Usagi’s ‘mother’ stared right at her in shock. The black and white world was breaking away to nothing, the shouts and words turning to static, and Mamoru tugged on her hard, getting her to the ground with him.

“What’s… what’s happening?”

“You changed too much and now the world is falling to pieces,” Mamoru murmured.

“You can see it too? Why is no one else freaking out?!”

She was grabbing onto Mamoru, her lifeline, as fear began to choke her. “They don’t seem to notice?”

Usagi looked up, under Mamoru’s chin as he loomed over her as a protector. She was marveling at his strong jaw, always taken aback by how handsome he was every time she was near him like this. Which was more often than she would consider normal.

It was just like in the lab, things were going weird and Mamoru was holding her tightly. He was sheltering her with his own body and she curled into him with all her might. Everything got so bright, she had to close her eyes. Her ear popped and her breath was pushed out of her lungs. Usagi sucked in a breath as soon as she could. It was like rising to the surface of water after being under too long, snapping her eyes open as she caught her breath.

The air tasted and smelled different. It was the first thing she noticed. The second was that she was lying down on something hard. Was it the lab floor? Was she back in her world?

Sitting up, her head spun for a moment but already, she knew she wasn’t in the right place. Usagi was surrounded by a gray stone that had moss and thick green vines growing on it. Birds chirped loudly, drawing her attention to a window. Getting to her feet, she looked out into the world she was in now. Not that she had any doubts before but when lush green trees and brushes let her instead of the Tokyo cityscape, Usagi knew she wasn’t home.

“Crap.”


End file.
